Thursday, January 28, 2016

It’s insane to want him, this beautiful,
strong, sexy man. Not just because her hot bodyguard is tasked with herding her
safely through the exotic night markets of Hong Kong. And not just because
she’s his boss. But because they are worlds apart. What they have can only be a
fling. It can’t last forever.

But Garrett has other ideas.

It was a relief to get Catherine
into another cab and head back to their hotel, but Garrett knew better than to
relax. At least until they reached sanctuary. And even then, he would stay on
alert.

This event had changed things,
shifted them away from a standard protection op onto the offensive. “I’ll stay
with you tonight.” God, it was hard keeping his tone casual.

Her head whipped around and she
gaped at him. “What?”

“You cannot be alone.” Her
horrified expression gutted him. He forced a laugh. “Don’t worry. I’ll sleep on
the couch.” And thank God her suite had a sitting room. But he would have made
a pallet on the floor if it hadn’t.

“I don’t need company.”

“You need protection.”

“No one is coming into my room.”

“Do you know that for certain?
Are you willing to bet your life?” Because it could be that, exactly.

Her determination faltered. She
nibbled her lip. He had to look away.

He wanted to nibble that lip.
And more.

“In the event someone does try
to get to you, I will be there.”

She huffed a sigh. “Oh, all
right.” She was as petulant as a little girl, but he sensed some hint of relief
in her tone. No doubt, despite her stalwart mask, she was scared.

She should be.

They pulled up to the hotel and
Garrett exited the cab first, scanning the curved drive. There were far too
many people standing around. “Come on,” he said, taking her hand and guiding
her from the cab, across the drive and into the spinning doors of the hotel.

The lobby was busy too. Garrett
quartered the space as he urged her toward the elevators. He was used to her
turning heads—of course she would, she was drop-dead gorgeous—but at this
moment it set his nerves on end.

A man sitting on a couch reading
a newspaper captured his attention. The look in his eye was too sharp. Garrett
quickly memorized his features. And there, another man, leaning against the
counter of the registration desk…too calculating.

The wait for the elevator took
forever. When it finally arrived, Garrett ushered her in. Perhaps with a little
too much force. She glared at him.

He ignored her ire. An older
couple stepped on the elevator with them, chattering about their evening and
then, to Garrett’s annoyance, the newspaper man did as well. He glanced at the
panel and pushed the button for the floor below Catherine’s.

Garrett knew, just knew, this
man was not staying at this hotel. He reached forward and pushed a random
button. When the elevator stopped on that floor, he ushered Catherine out.

Miraculously, she did not
protest. But she did ask, when the elevator shushed closed, “Why did you do
that?”

He shrugged. “Just a
precaution.” And he needed time to prepare. In the event they arrived at the
penthouse floor to find that man awaiting them. He called another elevator and
pulled out his SIG Sauer, just to be safe.

Catherine’s eyes widened and she
eeped, but she said nothing else.

The ride to their floor took
moments. Garrett gestured for Catherine to stay back as he checked out the
hall. To his relief, there was no one there. He quickly ushered her to the double
doors of her suite and, again, motioned for her to wait. It took less than a
minute for him to clear the room, but the entire time, his pulse slammed in his
veins. He hated leaving her outside while he checked the closets and the
bathroom, but it was safer.

When he was finally certain
there was no one there, he pulled her inside and locked the door.

Finally.

Finally she was safe.

He nearly collapsed with relief.

Until she turned to him and
said, “I’m hungry.”

He frowned at her. “We’re not
going back out.”

“But I’m hungry.”

He stormed over to the desk,
grabbed the room service menu and thrust it at her. She wrinkled her nose.
“They charge an extra seventeen percent for room service.”

“It’s safer.”

She gusted a sigh, but dropped
on the sofa—the one he’d be sleeping on, not that that thought winged through
his mind—and studied the offerings. “Do you want anything?”

Well hell. He was a little
hungry too. They’d had lunch at Hong Kong City Hall, but the dim sum had long
ago been burned off. The adrenaline, probably. “Do they have burgers?”

She nodded. “That’s what I’m
getting too.”

He liked that about her. Liked a
woman who ate real food.

As she called in the order, he
did a quick assessment of her suite, checking for any potential security
issues. Her rooms were on the top floor of the hotel with no balcony, so that
was a nonissue, but the locks on the door were not the best. Also, double doors
could be easily breached if they were not bolted into the floor. It annoyed him
that these were not. He had zip ties though. He could lash the handles together
and provide some added security—and time, should anyone decide to attempt an
incursion.

After she called in their order,
Catherine went to the bathroom. She was in there a long time. Long enough for
Garrett to suspect that what she really needed was some time alone. This had
been a rough day—for all of them.

Still, after a while, he knocked
on the door. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“Fine,” she called, but he
noticed it was a watery response.

Yeah. She just needed time to
deal with all this. He could hardly blame her.

She emerged just before the
knock came on the door, announcing their dinner had arrived.

It was tough, sitting there at
the table, watching her eat. Watching her swirl her fries in the ketchup and
suck it off. Watching her lick her fingers. Fucking lick her fingers.

Did she have any idea how sexy
that was?

He wanted nothing more right now
than to yank her into his arms and kiss her.

But he couldn’t. Shouldn’t.

She looked up. Caught him
staring at her. Instead of a glower—as he expected, being caught out like
this—her eyes widened like a gazelle on an African plain sighting a predator.

And fuck. He felt like one.

Especially when that wanting
look flickered through her eyes.

Oh, she tried to hide it, but he
saw it. Couldn’t miss it. It sent a flame licking through his body. He was damn
tired of pretending. Tired of looking away. Tired of acting like the simmering
arousal he felt for her didn’t exist. Tired of keeping himself constrained.

As he continued to watch her,
she became restless. And then she frowned. “Stop that,” she said.

“Stop what?”

“Stop looking at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you want to…eat me up.”

He did. He wanted to eat her all
up. And he wanted her to know it.

He couldn’t stop his roguish
grin. “Scott was right.”

She blinked. “What?”

“It is hard to be with you, day
in and day out, and not make a move.”

Her throat worked. “I…ah… Do you
want to make a move?”

“Hell, yeah.”

A pink tide crept up her cheeks.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“It’s not ridiculous in the
least.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you should know.”

“Know? Know what?” Her innocence
was feigned. It had to be. She was a grown woman. A knockout. Surely she knew
what effect she had on the males of the species.

“You should know how much I want
to kiss you right now.”

Her eyes shone. Her lips parted.
Her tongue peeped out.

And yeah.

That was an engraved invitation
if he’d ever seen one. Without a word, he pushed back his chair and rose. And
then he rounded the table, took hold of her wrist and yanked her into his arms.

Her Royal Hotness,
Sabrina York, is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author of hot,
humorous stories for smart and sexy readers. Her titles range from sweet &
sexy to scorching romance. Visit her webpage at www.sabrinayork.com to check
out her books, excerpts and contests.

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Our grocery stores occasionally send special prices on a few items for card members. One of ours for August was sweet potatoes, or yams as the notice read. So of course, I had to take advantage of the deal.
Thank you to Elise who shared her recipe on Simply Recipes. Her swas delicious even without the tweaks I made to spice it up a little as in this recipe. Enjoy!

Spread the sweet potatoes and shallots out on a foil lined baking sheet.

Roast for 25 minutes or until cooked through and nicely caramelized and browned around the edges. Remove from oven.

Heat the chicken stock in a 2-3 quart saucepan on the stove until steamy.
Place the cooked sweet potatoes and shallots in a blender or food processor. Add the hot chicken stock a half cup at a time. Purée until smooth.

NOTE, when blending hot liquids, fill the blender or food processor bowl no more than a third full, and start with short pulses. Depending on the size of your equipment you may need to work in batches.
Taste for seasoning, add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve in bowls with a good size dollop of sour cream.

Serves 2 to 4

Here's a brief into to my vampire story that is guaranteed to warm your winter nights.

Socialite Deb Stein lives a life of luxury until she takes the hunk dressed as a vampire to her bed. When she wakes up one of the living dead, she’s pissed-off. To complicate matters more, she has to find a new identity since everyone thinks she's dead. Plus, if she’s dead, she can’t touch her trust fund, and that means she has to work! How can someone who has never held a job find one?
And her social life is in the tank. Her new friends are a street guy called Rat and fellow strippers at the dive where she works. If she ever sees Aaron Lowell again, she’ll put a stake in his heart.
Aaron Lowell feels guilty he took his mentor’s advice and left town after taking the sexy socialite into the undead world.

Concerned, he returns to check on her and discovers she’s become a stripper—and not a very happy one when she sees him. But she’s still hot, and he can’t stay away from her, even if their meetings are explosive.
Can two vampires move beyond anger, combined with a strong sexual attraction, to find the kind of love they both crave?
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To read excerpts from other books by Lizzie T. Leaf please click onto Amazon.

Lizzie T. Leaf loved books since she opened her first one. Her dream was to write them herself. Lost in the hectic day to day world of family, job, laundry and housework, writing became a distant memory. When the twinkling ember did spark, it was usually doused by someone demanding their share of her time.
Lizzie's life went full circle. The desire to put the stories that continued to play in her head on paper emerged stronger than ever, and at a time when there was someone who encouraged. Now she lives her dream.
Learn more about Lizzie T. Leaf on her website and blog. Connect with Lizzie on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.
See all of Lizzie's book on Amazon.

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

A murderer strikes Los Lobos… Heartbreak and hardship have returned to the Taos pack. Even though survival is a rote course for Dani, a woman can only handle so much. Her brother’s mate has been murdered and he’s missing. The pack Alpha was left for dead at the scene. Oh, and her ex-lover has been tasked with finding her brother. Thane returned to make things right with the healing pack and the female he left behind. Leaving had been the only option that kept Dani safe. Now he’s back and not about to let her or the pack down again. Despite the tense situation, his wolf refuses to ignore the woman determined to “help” find her estranged brother. One way or another, she’d be his.

“Depends on what?” she asked, willing her mind back to the conversation even though her brain was still refusing to accept he was real. She’d stumbled into an alternate world, fallen into a heady dream where second chances were possible.

“Why does it matter how I found out?”
“Why did you bother finding out?”

“Does it bother you I did?”

“Does it bother you I want to know why?”

A growl punctured the air as he charged the distance between them and dragged her against his hard body. Her hand hovered over his chest. Not hers to touch, to claim.

“Let me go, Thane.”

“Now’s not the time to play games, Dani. I asked you a question.”

“I asked you a question too.” She dared a hesitant gaze up and the breath she’d held tumbled from her lungs.

His scent wafted in her nostrils, goose bumps formed wherever their skin touched. And those lips. She’d missed them the most, the way one kiss from him carried her into a world where no one existed but them. He’d kissed her often, too. Everyone said she lived in a Thane-induced haze.

“Just because I left doesn’t mean I left you, Dani. I did a lot of messed up things back then and my staying could’ve have a backlash. You would’ve felt it.”

“I did,” she whispered as her fingers settled against the cotton stretched across the groove between his pecs.

He grasped her hair and tugged until their eyes locked. Her pulse pounded wildly in her ears, her body tightened against him. “Why did you cut your hair?”